New feature : Independent raise/tilt locks for front standard

One of the things that bugged me on my own 4x5 is the single knob locking both raise/fall and tilt, making it impossible to set up raise & tilt with any precision. This new design, to be included with the "DeLuxe" version solves this issue by using two knobs. The raise/fall slit was extended and the guide was redesigned to act as reinforcement for the front standard, now that the slit goes almost the entire length of the piece.

The side effect of this new feature is a reduced raise capability or reduced drop capability, depending on how the parts are mounted. When the parts are mounted as pictured, the raise and drop are around 1" inch each for a total travel of approx 2". When the slider is mounted backwards (the raise/drop knob is below the tilt lock), the drop is limited to .625" and the raise is extended to 2". Changing the mounting option requires no tools and takes a couple of minutes.

The new slide guide (offered for all kit versions) when used without the independent raise/tilt mechanism (used with a single knob lock for both raise/fall and tilt) slightly increases the travel range (compared with the previous design) to 3" (2" raise, 1" drop).

No time in the shop, but the website is getting updates.

I have not had any time to work in the shop on the prototype, but I've been redesigning some of the parts that needed changes, most of which were made obvious by the parts of the prototype that I've build so far. I also added quite a few new features to the website : http://www.diycamerakit.com/

First, I added a poll about the film formats that people would want to see camera kits for, so, if you would be so kind, please go to the website and place your vote.

I added an "articles" feature which would allow me and other authors to publish articles on which users can comment/review on, an RSS feed for the articles is available as well.

I uploaded a list of parts that will be available for sale at some point in the fall, also a few kits. This was a test upload, most of the descriptions are missing, there are no pictures and the prices that are published are highly speculative. I will be working on completing the list and publishing the pictures in the next few months.

I will keep you posted!

Building the prototype : the back and the rear standard

I spent most of the day today working on the prototype. I had to manually make some cuts which were missed during the CNC cutting due to bugs in the code for the CNC machine, so it took way longer then it should've taken.

Learned quite a bit. I had some bugs in the G-code (the code the CNC machine needs to cut each part) for various parts. There are some areas where it's very bad if you let glue seep through the joins and harden. Like for the ground glass holder, where the distance the glass sits from the back is critical, having to remove hardened glue without removing any wood is a majot PITA.

The other thing is that when I sanded the ground glass holder guides round, the dowels which were not exposed initially, got exposed. Since I used light colored dowels, as this is what I had around, now they are an eye sore.

I also need to use more guiding holes and more dowels.

The bad news is that I have major issues with cutting the brass parts. I can't seem to find a way to cut the plate without having it take 3 days and without breaking end mills (it gets expensive at $5 a piece). I'm not sure how am I going to proceed.

The next step, aside from finding a way to make the brass parts is to assemble the bed. That's where most of the bugs in the G-code were, so I might have to cut the parts again.

Building the prototype : camera back #1

Last night I assembled a part of the camera back. In the picture you can see the guide holes and the dowels used to precisely align the parts for gluing. Once the glue cures, the dowels are ground down. The holes are made in such way that are not visible when the camera is mounted (they don't go all the way through on the parts sides that are visible from the outside). For the most part mounting the parts was simple, though I am now convinced that the parts need to be individually marked with the part number and which face is which. It's possible to identify the parts by looking at the diagrams, but it's a bit of a pain.

Also, there is no such thing as too many clamps. I didn't place one of the clamps properly, and one of the joints is not perfect. Grrr. It's not affecting the functionality, but it doesn't look perfect.

The 4x5 folding camera prototype is under way!

The wooden parts were cut on the CNC machine in 10 different plates. The prototype is made of red oak as that's what I had laying around. Due to it's dimensional instability, it will not be offered as one of the material options, even though the texture and the color of the wood is amazing.




I'm using the bandsaw to separate the parts off the plates, but a coping saw would work just as well (or even better, as it's very easy to "ding" the parts when using a bandsaw).


The pile of parts. The connecting bridges and the sharp edges need to be sanded off.




My made shift sander (a handheld sander clamped sideways to a piece of plywood). It sped up the sanding process dramatically, compared with doing that by hand. Note the dust colection hose, for the sake of your lungs, wear a mark and/or make sure the dust is sucked away.

The sanded off parts. What was not captured is me using a small file to file off and bring to size the rear standard "dove tail" area. You can spot the assembled front standard frame and frame support. I got a bit too enthousiastic with the samding of the plate which held the front standar parts, so you can see the gap caused by the thinner plate in the join.


Tonight I'll start cutting the brass parts and start assembling the wooden parts.




FREELANCE COPYWRITER

Suggestions & wish list

Please post your suggestions as comments.

4x5 folding camera specs

Size : the folded camera will fit in a box with the inside dimensions 8" x 8" x 4"
Weight : not yet determined, and will definitely depend of the choice of materials.
Movements :
Front rise/drop - 3"
Front axis tilt - limited by bellows only.
Front base tilt - forward 30deg, back, limited by bellows.
Front swing - limited by bellows.
Front shift - 3"
Rear ride/drop - 3"
Rear base tilt - back 15deg, front - limited by bellows.
Rear variable axis tilt - +/- 20 deg (see the paragraph below for a description of the variable axis mechanism)
Rear variable axis swing +/- 20 deg.
Rear shift - 3"
Focusing :
Geared focusing by moving the rear and front standards (separately).
Maximum extension 14"
Other
Removable bellows (no tools required)
Maximum size of lens which can be used : n/a yet
Maximum size of lens which allows camera to fold : n/a yet
Rotating back (by removal and turning it 90 degres)
Maximum depth of film holder that can be used : n/a yet